The present invention relates to a plate-type heat exchanger and to a heating or air-conditioning system for a motor vehicle which is equipped with such a heat exchanger.
One known air-conditioning system, for example, disclosed in DE 198 04 389, has what is known as a plate-type evaporator. The evaporator has first flow passages that are formed, in each case, from one pair of plates, for a refrigerant of the air-conditioning system, and corrugated fins which are arranged between respectively adjacent plate pairs and around which the air which is to be cooled flows. Known plate evaporators of this type are of cuboidal structure and are fitted in the air-conditioning system between a blower and a heat exchanger for cooling the air which is to be directed into the passenger compartment.
Motor vehicles today are required to have external dimensions which are as compact as possible, while the interior should be as large as possible. Accordingly, it is an objective for the air-conditioning systems to be made increasingly compact, so that they require the minimum possible space. Therefore, it is attempted to make the individual components of the air-conditioning system smaller and more efficient, as shown, for example, in DE 197 19 252, in which the disclosed evaporator is designed in such a way that its total depth amounts to at most 50 mm.